It is generally known to include a silicone component at a distal end of a medical electrical lead. The distal silicone component is designed to easily track through a guide catheter or other delivery system, to insulate conductors from one another and from the environment, and to help mitigate corrosion of the conductors. Conventional initial distal silicone designs have been formed using as much silicone as possible. One result of forming the distal silicone component in this manner is that if the outer diameter of the molded silicone part is much larger than the inner diameter of the electrodes to be strung onto the lead, dimensional interference between the internal features of the electrodes and the outer diameter of the lead formed by the silicone can occur. In these cases, in order to string the electrodes onto the lead, the molded silicone is compressed and/or stretched while the electrodes are slid over the silicone into their final positions.